100 Themes
by bits.mah
Summary: 100 stories about the characters on glee. Several pairings, ratings and genres. Chapter 5: Quinn, Rachel, New York and a starless sky.
1. Staccato

**Theme: **Staccato

**Characters: **Finn/Rachel

**Warnings: **None.

* * *

"Sta- what?"

"Staccato."

"What does that even mean?" Finn was looking more confused by the second. Rachel sighed.

"I already told you. It means that the note is not connected."

"And why do I need to know this?"

Rachel took a long calming breath, trying to explain the simple concept to her rather slow boyfriend.

"_Because_, Finn, someday we're going to be a famous duet. We'll make our own songs and perform in front of millions every week. But for that you need to be able to understand music!"

Finn sent her a pleading look. "I'm not good with this fancy musical notes stuff, Rach. I can play the drums and I can learn the guitar if you want but that's it." Rachel opened her mouth to lecture Finn on the importance of the matter, but was cut off.

"You're smart enough for the both of us." Finn gave a desperate little smile, holding out his arms to hug her. She leaned in, resting her head against his chest.

"That's true." She smiled a little. "But I wanted us to make our songs together!"

"We will, but that's a while from now. Can't we just call it a day?" She nodded into his chest and hugged tighter.

Finn kissed the top of her head and rested his cheek on it, a small smile on his face. They stayed like that for a while, content to just hold each other.

"You will learn it sooner or later, though, got it?"

Finn sighed, then nodded, still smiling.

* * *

I'm new to the whole writing thing, so please do leave constructive critism and reviews! Also, here's the list of themes/prompts I'm using:

http : / / gaarapwnssasuke . deviantart . com / art / Prompts-for-Writers-96056267

(and if anyone is wondering, most likely pairings will be Karomel, Finchel, Purt, Tike, Brittana, amongst a few other and non-shippy stories)


	2. Loves me not

**Theme: **Loves me not

**Characters: **Karofsky/Kurt

**Warnings:** None.

* * *

Karofsky sits on an old rusty swing, facing the afternoon sun that hangs low in the sky. He'll have to go home soon- his parents may let him go to the park alone, but he has to be back before dark.

He just turned ten last week, and he thought that might gain him more liberties, but no such luck. It's a shame, really, because he always wants to stay just a bit longer and play with his friends for just a few more minutes, but the sun always sets so very fast. As it is, his friends already went home and he realizes if he doesn't go soon his mom will be upset.

He sighs and kicks his legs high in the air, swinging off the seat, landing several feet away. He brushes off the dirt that he stirred up from his jeans and starts walking home.

The park is a rather big one, with lots of trees, open fields, playgrounds and a small shallow creek running through it. There's an old wooden bridge that crosses the creek and to be honest, it's always kind of creeped him out. Even in the daylight it was dark, always cast in shadows by the many trees that surrounded it, and it made frightening squeaks every time he stepped on it. He swears one of these days it will give out.

He walks fast through the whole park, but when he reaches the aforementioned bridge he takes cautious steps, trying to make himself light as possible. It's during this careful trek that he notices a movement out of the corner of his eye. Bellow him, huddled near the creek, is a small figure. He stops at the middle of the bridge and looks down at what he realizes is a boy, probably younger than him judging by his petite frame.

The boy isn't dressed in what he and his friends normally wear, which would be jeans and a T-shirt. No, this boy is wearing a light purple button-down shirt tucked into _plaid _pants. Karofsky thinks he looks ridiculous, like one of those nerdy boys who are dressed by their moms. He bets if the boy turns around slightly, he'd able to see thick, round glasses too. Now he wants to see the boy's face. He smiles crookedly.

"Hey, nice dork-pants! Did your mom pick them for you?" He taunts. He feels quite clever.

The boy turns around and looks up. He's actually wearing a freaking bowtie, of all things, but no glasses. Karofsky notices that his eyes are really pretty, though he's too far away to see the color. And what's weird is that the boy's face is so blank. When he teases other boys, he gets varied reactions. Sometimes they look embarrassed or angry, or even scared. This boy is none of those.

"My mother is dead."

_Oh._

Karofsky misses a beat, not prepared for that. He leans back, trying to think of something to say. The boy continues staring at him with the blank face and pretty eyes.

He thinks of telling the boy he looks like a dork regardless, but something about that doesn't feel right.

"Oh. I, uh. Sorry."

He doesn't feel very clever anymore. The smaller kid tilts his head a little and stares for a bit more before turning back to whatever it was he was doing.

Karofsky stands there stupidly for a second, before snapping out of it and continuing on his way home. When he reaches his house, he opens the door and hugs his mother tightly before quickly letting go. Ignoring her questioning gaze, he walks up the stairs to his room and tries not to think about weird boys with pretty eyes.

The next day was seeming uneventful, until recess came around. He sits with his friends on some plastic benches. Puck talks about his new gameboy and how awesome it is and all the other boys beg to have a chance at playing it. Karofsky always preferred sports over videogames, so he distracts himself from the conversation by looking around the patio. And then he notices something. Someone, actually. The same small boy from yesterday, sitting alone under a tree, playing with what seems to be power ranger figurines.

He thinks it's strange that he never noticed that they went to the same school. Perhaps the boy is new. It certainly would explain why he was alone and why he didn't know better than to dress so ridiculously.

For a moment he considers walking over to the kid, but then he remembers that big kids don't hang out with little kids, especially not dorky little kids. His friends would never let him live it down if he tried to by friends with the pretty-eyed boy.

He spends the entire week like this, observing the boy from afar during recess and even getting an occasional glimpse of him at the park. It's there that he sometimes sees the boy with an older man; his dad, most likely. The boy doesn't seem to have any friends. He also seems to be picked on by other kids a lot, especially when the grown up man isn't around. This makes Karofsky sad, because now he knows for sure that there is no chance he can become friends with the boy. He doesn't want to be picked on too.

He learns at school that the boy's name is Kurt. It's Azimio who tells him so, saying also that he is a nancy-boy that probably plays with dolls and that his dad told him to stay away from kids like that. Karofsky isn't sure what nancy-boy means, but he thinks it probably has something to do with girly stuff, which makes sense because Kurt does seem kind of girly. It never really bothered him though. He wonders why Azimio's dad wouldn't want his son around Kurt.

Another week goes by, and he continues to think about Kurt a lot. He tries to watch him less, afraid that the other boys would notice. But since his thoughts are his and his only, he feels safe to regularly think about him. He wonders if this is what having a crush feels like. He knows it's silly, and that boys are supposed to like girls, but Kurt is really girly so it's okay, right?

Right.

He goes to the park again, walking ever so slowly over the dark creepy bridge. He sighs in relief when he reaches the other side, and is about to carry on when something catches his eye. It's small and purple and it really stands out in such a dark place. He walks closer, noticing that it's actually a flower. It reminds him of Kurt. He plucks it out of the ground and stands there for a moment, looking at the flower.

A thought comes to him and he blushes. He feels ridiculous for even considering it. It's a girl thing, he sees them doing it all the time, even though it's silly and probably not reliable. But then again, he's really curious and no one is around. He does a full spin to make sure no one really is around before turning back to the flower. He takes a breath and pulls ones of the petals.

_He loves me._

He lets the petal fall, pulling out the next one.

_He loves me not._

Again.

_He loves me._

There's only one petal left.

_He loves me not._

He looks at the small purple petal in his hand and feels incredibly stupid. He crushes it between his index finger and thumb, letting the stem fall to the ground. It was a stupid idea anyway, just another pointless thing girls like to do and it means nothing. He doesn't even know why was tempted to in the first place.

Besides, it's not like Kurt would actually like him. He had only talked to the boy once, and that hadn't gone very well. And he really wasn't going to try to talk to him again. He simply couldn't.

It was all Kurt's fault anyway- he wouldn't feel so stupid if the boy had never caught his eye, if he didn't always wear such outrageous clothes, if he didn't have such pretty eyes, if he was just like the other boys. Yes, it's all Kurt's fault.

The next time he sees him is at school- he's wearing a white jacket with way too many pockets. Karofsky walks in his direction looking straight ahead and passes by a little too close, making his shoulder bump harshly into the other boy. He hears a little squawk followed by a dull thud come from behind him and guesses the boy lost his balance and fell.

Karofsky doesn't look back.

* * *

Uh, not feeling too sure about this one.

Please leave a review and tell me what you think c:


	3. Murderous

Hi. Sorry about the lack of updates. I may or may not have forgotten about this for a while. (oops)

**Theme: **Murderous

**Characters: **Karofsky/Kurt

**Warnings: **A bit of language, and a very odd style.

* * *

Many things are lost in translation when complexity is made into simplicity. This is how Karofsky was misunderstood.

(or failed to understand)

.

He is the extraordinarily ordinary boy. Extraordinarily simple. Things that are not such as him are computed and made so. He does not watch films that question society's habits nor does he read books that make one reflect on their own life. He plays hockey and football and likes eating hotdogs with too much cheese.

He strictly does not enjoy things that differ too greatly from his lifestyle. He does this because he is simple and simplicity does not understand empathy. He rejects these differences like he rejects a part of himself, that is hidden deep down like a secret, a secret buried so well it is smothered and suffocated and barely noticeable and almost not like a secret at all.

(It is a non-secret, because he does not have secrets, because they are complex and he is not complex, and instead very very simple, extraordinarily simple)

He doesn't think about it much, and for a while, he doesn't think about it at all, and here is when he finds himself at the peak of all that is ordinary. He could've felt a lot of things, but he takes those many (too many) feelings and jumbles them together and finds the one simple emotion that stands out. Contentment. All the extras and rests, good and bad and too complex to fall into either category, are smothered and stamped and hidden somewhere deep deep down just like his non-secret.

Contentment is nice. It isn't much else other than nice, but nice is simple and he can understand simple. However, feelings are ephemeral and soon enough contentment is gone and so is his peace of mind. For one reason or another he thinks about his non-secret more than ever.

It is not simple and he does not comprehend it, or why he thinks it, or why he feels it. Complicated feelings rumble inside of him in a frenzy but he does not feel complicated things. Here is what he feels: Frustration.

He takes to pushing Kurt around more than usual. Kurt is so very different, even more than the other kids Karofsky bullies. He glows of his own light, as if ignited by his confidence. Kurt stands out, painfully so. Heads turn to stare at the phenomenon that is the boy; stares full of contempt and bewilderment.

(And inside some feel wonder. Just like Karofsky does. Doesn't.)

(He feels frustration)

There are no slushies or shoves that can sooth his frustration. The boy remains happy and assured and glowing like boys should not be. He feels a wild uncontrolled need to break this boy, because something inside him tells him that is the answer, that is what will stop the frustration, the bad thoughts, the non-secret that lingers at the surface of his consciousness, and everything will fade away to contentment. So he pushes harder.

Kurt responds in the worst possible way, the opposite of what he should. He calls Karofsky out and follows him.

Their voices echo in the locker room like reminders of their harsh words. The insults come that out of Karofsky's mouth are verbal forms of his frustration, lashing out, looking for release. Kurt responds to each one eloquently but with the same fiery passion, no signs of fear in his eyes. He gets in Karofsky's face, daunting, flaunting his complexity and his confidence in himself. He tells Karofsky to do it. To hit him. To let all the pent up frustration go in one single blow.

Here is what his body does without a single warning to his brain:

He kisses Kurt.

His mind is blissfully empty and in that moment there are no feelings, no complexity and no simplicity, no judgement or glowing boys.

Just frustration flowing out him through his lips like never before. He isn't sure why his body decided to pull away (he sees shock in his eyes) and so he goes back for more but there are hands against his chest and suddenly Kurt is several feet away.

Everything kicks back in, hitting him like a tidal wave and it's too much; the frustration has given way to anger. His fists slam against the locker and he flees. His simple mind refuses to process what just happened but it knows _something_ happened. His blood pumps loudly, drowning out his own thoughts. He feels dizzy and disoriented, the world around him is like a sharp contrast to what goes on inside him. The hallway is empty and seems to be tilting slowly, but he is steady in making his way across it as if his mind weren't spinning at all.

He finds the boy's bathroom and splashes his heated face with water, but the water drips so fast from his face, it mixes with the sweat he hadn't even felt and it only succeeds in making him feel worse. He leans against the adjacent wall for support, sliding down against it. He tries to make sense of something.

(there is no sense)

(why would he kiss Kurt?)

His mind spins in a mix of red and black and everything is too fast, yet he feels an urgency. He needs things to go back to simple. _Urgently_.

He takes a deep breath. And another one. And then a few more, until he feels a little more like himself. He tells himself it didn't happen. Nothing happened. His lips are burning.

He knows, he _knows_ that his lips were on Kurt's (soft and tasteless) but that just doesn't make sense. Unless Kurt kissed him. Yes- that makes sense. It's what happened. One more deep breath.

(A lie told a thousand times becomes a truth)

He gets up and leaves the bathroom, fully intent on carrying on his extraordinarily simple life.

It's not that easy. The very next day, he finds Kurt (his glow has not dulled) and some other fancy looking boy on the stairs. They want to talk to him. About what never happened.

They have no right. No fucking right. What do they know? They aren't simple.

Kurt says he kissed him. He can see people everywhere. Kurt is lying. He knows nothing, how could he even? His world is so very different from Karofsky's. He is extraordinary, but not simple. Karofsky's answers are short, he doesn't plan them- there's something nervous inside of him, all he can do at the moment is react.

And he reacts very much to the kid in the blazer. Who tells him he's not alone. Something inside him (deep deep down inside, hidden away) snaps and breaks and suddenly the boy's face is very close to his.

(_but there are hands against his chest and suddenly Kurt is several feet away_)

He walks down the stairs, the feeling from the day prior returning but this time laced with anger. He'd been okay, he'd been fine, he'd buried it down, but they just had to dig it up. It was as if they wouldn't allow him his simplicity, to have _normal_ life. He wants to blend in and be content- and have no secrets.

(because it is a non-secret, but they think it's a secret and they've got it all wrong. They don't understand)

(and it was _Kurt_ who kissed _him _anyway)

He is the extraordinarily ordinary boy and he feels rage. He also feels a pinprick of fear - that may actually be a thunderstorm instead - that all he knows might be taken away from him. He feels like his life is slowly slipping away from him and he needs to hold on because if not he has nothing. He is angry, angry at Kurt for glowing, for being complex, and finally, for trying to take his simplicity away from him. His anger is so strong he feels sick to his stomach every time the boy passes him.

(Every time the boy walks past him it's like he takes a little bit of Karofsky with him and Karofsky is losing he control over this)

Not too soon after that it becomes too much. He sees the boy in the hallway and this will be the last time he will let Kurt take a piece of his life from him. He walks up to the glowing boy makes sure that no one knows-

("you kissed me, Karofsky" liar liar fucking liar)

There is so much anger inside of him. He cannot handle it, he feels like he might throw up, but he can't do that, because then other things might come out. Like all those things he buries deep deep down inside and prays no one will find. Instead he looks at this phenomenal boy and tells him that he will kill him if he tells anyone.

(because if he does his life is over as well. Eye for eye)

* * *

Um, this one is a bit wierd, I know. It's actually not how I truly view Karofsky's character, but the theme was "murderous" so I tried.

I promise the next theme will come much sooner. Please review!


	4. Lethal Habits

**Theme: **Lethal Habits

**Characters: **Puck/Quinn

**Warnings: **Drug use, complete waste of your time, possible grammer mistakes

* * *

"That could end up killing you, you know."

Puck turned at the sound of the familiar voice. Quinn was leaning against one of the columns that supported the bleachers. He had come there because it's the place all students go to when they don't want to be seen by school faculty. He raised an eyebrow at her, wondering why she was even talking to him. To his surprise, she spoke again;

"I never knew you smoked."

It's pot, but she didn't realize it and wasn't about to point it out either.

"It's nice, once in a while." He stepped towards her, smirking. "But I never knew you cared so much."

She scoffed, turning her head to the right. "You wish. I don't really even know why I bother trying to stop you from doing stupid things- it's like being an idiot is in your DNA or something."

He lost his smirk and glared at her instead, although she didn't notice, having still been looking out into the distance.

"Don't bother then. No one asked you to."

Her head snapped back to stare at him. Her mouth opened and then closed. She let out a strange little huffing sound before turning on her heel and strutting away. He tracked her movements with his eyes until she finally went out of sight. He looked down at his joint and sighed, dropping it to the ground.

"Godamn her."

* * *

This one is all kinds of pointless. I had a hard time coming up with anything for this theme.


	5. Nemesis

**Theme: **Nemesis

**Characters: **Quinn/Rachel

**Warnings: **This was written mid-season, so it doesn't follow cannon completely.

* * *

It was strange. One would expect to find Rachel in front of the full length mirror placed in the hotel room, practicing the dance moves ruthlessly or doing vocal runs. It was, after all, the night before Nationals.

They had toured New York during the day and she had been completely overwhelmed by the life of the city. Everything seemed so big and grand, so _alive_. So many people were out and about, strutting down the streets and in cars, each one entirely immersed in their own lives, oblivious to the outside world around them. The people in this city seemed untouchable, and she had been struck by a sudden sense of longing. She wanted to know about their lives, to feel what they felt; to be a part of it all.

Upon arriving back at the hotel, had instructed them to go back to their rooms and rest. It was a laughable request, considering nearly all of them were so nervous they were practically shaking. Oddly enough, Rachel wasn't. She felt subdued, almost melancholic. It was as if she was longing and nostalgic, but not sure why.

She'd gone back to her room with Mercedes, who had agreed to be her roommate for the duration of this trip. After taking a shower and putting on comfortable clothes, she found that she couldn't stand the rich cream colored walls that matched the color of the carpet, that also matched the bed sheets, the drapes, the furniture . It was suffocating. So she left.

The cream colored hallway did little to nothing to make her feel better. She ducked into the staircase, and it was clear that it wasn't a place where they had expected any of the guests to go. The greenish fluorescent light gave it a slight feeling of decadence, which was only furthered by the cracks on the paint upon the walls. At least they weren't cream colored too.

She found herself curiously climbing the stairs, to see how far they would go, to give herself something to do, anything. The steps ended at a door with "ROOFTOP" written in bold red letters. She pushed it open , slightly out of breath, and stepped outside. It was gorgeous. Their hotel wasn't even close to being as tall as some of the other buildings that surrounded it, but it still gave her a much bigger view of the city. In the nighttime the lights were like a twinkling galaxy, bright enough to outshine the stars themselves. She started towards the ledge to get a better view when a movement caught her eye.

"Quinn?"

The girl in question was standing in the corner, looking out at the city, rubbing her arms up and down as if bothered by the slight chill. She turned her head at the sound of her name, looking surprised to see Rachel there.

Rachel expected some comment on why she wasn't practicing like crazy back in her room or getting some precious beauty sleep, in the condescending tone Quinn always managed to use to make everyone else feel inferior.

Not to say that the blonde wanted to hurt her feelings like she had in the past. They got past a lot of things, especially in the last month. They weren't even close to being friends, but at least they weren't enemies any longer. Regardless, Quinn was rather vicious, and Rachel braced herself, ready to look past what ever derogatory comment was coming.

Instead, Quinn simply titled her head, beckoning her to come closer.

The brunette walked over to her side and they both stared out at the yellow streetlights bellow. Cars passed by and the loud chatter of pedestrians seemed like a soft whisper from where they stood.

"Do you ever feel like you're going backwards when everyone is moving forward?"

Rachel sent her a bewildered stare. "Excuse me?"

Quinn half smiled and rubbed a hand down her face. "Never mind. I'm thinking too hard again." She turned to see Rachel staring indulgently, and sighed.

"It's just that- …You know how-…" She paused a moment to gather her thoughts, her lips pursed tightly, before continuing, "I've been through so much. I was at the top of the top and was thrown down brutally. _I had a baby._ I've had my lies thrown back in my face. I crawled my way back to the top. The thing is, it doesn't feel any better. I thought once I was back in control things would be okay. But they're not. Things are just like they were before this whole mess started, but this time I know better. I make the same mistakes, but I know I shouldn't. It's like watching a train wreck and I can't do anything to stop it."

She took a deep breath, leaning forward to rest her elbows on the ledge, and cradled her head between her hands.

"I got Finn back, but I kept pressuring him in all the wrong ways. I kept telling myself I won't do it anymore, but as soon as he would come around, I'd be back to my old self again. He likes me, I know, maybe he loves me. But he loves you too. After everything, he stills loves you. Sam was another mistake. He was another Finn."

She lifted her head to look directly at Rachel.

"Why? Why do I keep repeating the past? Look at everyone. Puck matured. He fell in love. Kurt has a boyfriend. Santana came to terms with who she is. Tina doesn't stutter anymore. Even you; you came so far. You have friends now, and people appreciate your talent. What about me? Why am I stuck?"

Rachel gaped a little, not sure what to say. To her, Quinn never had any insecurities. She was always so sure of herself, determined. What she wanted, she got. Even with the pregnancy, the former cheerleader had still manipulated people to her will. Finn had been ready to raise the baby, Noah had tried so hard to help. People wanted to please her.

What was even more surprising was that Quinn had decided to talk to her at all. Sure, they had sort of bonded in the past, but it always seemed like she was nothing more than a loud annoying obstacle in Quinn's way.

She could admit to knowing that the girl was softer than she let most people know, but she never knew to what extent. She put a hand gently on Quinn's shoulder.

"You did come a long way. You might make the same mistakes, but at least you know they're wrong. You care. You're in glee now. And you know it's where you belong, because now you know what it's like to have friends that really love you for who you really are. It's why you quit Cheerios."

Quinn's eyes raised from the streets below to stare blandly at the tall building in front of them.

"I wasn't going to. Finn convinced me. I had chosen Sue and popularity over all of you first."

Rachel squeezed her shoulder lightly, "It's what you chose in the end that matters. Finn could've talked his mouth off if he wanted to and it would've gotten him nowhere, if you really hadn't wanted to be a part of glee.".

The blonde stood straight to face her, and she let her hand fall of her shoulder.

"You know, for someone who is supposedly so self-absorbed, you're actually not entirely deficient at relating to people."

"And you're not as horrible of a person as you think you are."

They both smiled softly before turning back to the city before them. They still weren't friends, and she knew that Quinn would drag her down if she came between her and her current goal again. It didn't bother her though. After all, Rachel is like that too. Determination and bright smiles to hide the pain, the loneliness.

The sounds of city life hummed in the distance, and for a moment, under a starless sky, they understood.


End file.
